‘Assassins’ were planning to kill high-profile politicians

Among the many targets were President Abdullah Gül, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Parliament Speaker Mehmet Ali Şahin. Most observers said the planned assassinations were aiming to create an atmosphere of chaos in the country.

Two members of the Special Forces Command, Maj. İbrahim G. and Col. Erkan Yılmaz B., were detained on Saturday night on suspicion of plotting to kill Arınç. Both officers are assigned to the General Staff. Gendarmerie and police teams retrieved a piece of paper in one of the vehicles of the two officers which featured Arınç's home address. The teams launched a search of the suspects' houses, resulting in the discovery of several maps showing the houses of top government officials and ministers. A document showed that Arınç had been closely monitored by the two officers since March 2009. Several pages of hand-drawn sketches showing the addresses of Gül, Erdoğan and Şahin were also seized during the search. The sketches were sent to the forensics department of the Ankara Police for analysis to determine by whom they were drawn.

Police also seized a fake press card belonging to the colonel during the search. Prosecutors are investigating for what purpose the colonel was planning to use the card.

The two officers were released after interrogation by a military prosecutor on Tuesday. The Ankara Public Prosecutor’s Office is examining possible links between the two and shady networks, including Ergenekon and Atabeyler.

Ergenekon is a shadowy group suspected of trying to overthrow the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government. Atabeyler is a gang whose plans to assassinate Erdoğan were uncovered in 2007.

An examination of video recordings from security cameras in the vicinity of Arınç’s house showed that the major and the colonel had explored the neighborhood several times with vehicles they had hired from private car rental companies.

When Ankara police first received information in early December from unidentified persons that a plan to assassinate Arınç had been put into action, they reportedly focused on leftist groups as the possible instigators of the plot.

Police believed it was part of a series of planned attacks on the anniversary of the Hayata Dönüş (Back to Life) operation in 2000, which was staged to end a hunger strike collectively launched by inmates in 20 prisons throughout the country. Thirty-two died and hundreds were injured in the operation, in which 10,000 security officers participated.

Arınç, who was the parliament speaker at the time, granted a Supreme Service Medal to Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK) member Ali Suat Ertosun for his performance in the operation. Ertosun was then head of the General Directorate of Prisons and Detention Centers.

Leftists groups accuse Arınç of rewarding the killings that took place in prisons during the notorious operation by awarding Ertosun a medal.

In the meantime, Ankara police have requested the records of the phone conversations of İbrahim G. and Erkan Yılmaz B. from the Telecommunications Directorate (TİB). Police believe the records could shed light on the links between the two officers and clandestine organizations.

Arınç plans to discuss assassination plot in MGK meeting

Arınç stated that he plans to discuss the assassination plot with members of the National Security Council (MGK) during its next meeting, slated for Dec. 28, the Star daily reported on Wednesday.

Among the members of the MGK are government officials, the chief of general staff, Gen. İlker Başbuğ, and other army generals.

Arınç said he has discussed the plot with Prime Minister Erdoğan, Interior Minister Beşir Atalay and Ankara Police Chief Orhan Özdemir so far. “I watched the video recordings from the security cameras. I also saw other documents. They told me that the counter-terrorism teams from the Ankara Police Department took prompt action when they received information about a planned assassination. There were two suspicious vehicles. One belongs to the General Staff and the other was hired from a private car rental company. The two detained are officers on active duty. The police launched an operation [against] them on Saturday night,” the deputy prime minister noted.

Asked why he could have been picked out for assassination, Arınç replied: “I have personal comments on such a plot, but it would not be correct to share them with the public at the moment. However, I can say that we are always under threat.”

The deputy prime minister also expressed his wish for a rapid conclusion to the ongoing probe into the devious plot. “You know our prime minister’s sensitivity to the issue. He is closely following developments,” Arınç added.

In the meantime, Erdoğan spoke to reporters on Tuesday about the assassination plot against Arınç and defined it as “grave and thought-provoking.” He said he hopes the judiciary will conclude the investigation in such a way as to clarify the ambiguity surrounding the incident.

Ex-justice minister: Plot aimed at fomenting chaos

Former Justice Minister Hikmet Sami Türk claimed that the plot against Arınç was aimed at fomenting an atmosphere of chaos in the country. “Some circles in this country, unfortunately, exercise violence and hope to attain their objectives through acts of terror,” he said.

Türk escaped unscathed from an explosion at an Ankara university in April after a woman approached him and detonated a bomb. An expert in constitutional law, Türk was about to enter a Bilkent University hall to give a lecture when a woman, identified as Didem Akman, approached him and ignited the fuse of a bomb she was carrying on her body, but the bomb did not explode.

“Attacks against politicians occur in many countries. But they cannot be justified or approved. I strongly denounce the plotters and perpetrators of the planned assassination against the deputy prime minister,” Türk remarked.